Best Jobs by Location

PayScale has a database of more than 14,000 job titles – but which jobs are most popular in each of the 8 Census Regions? Find out if the business cards of a particular region match the industries you associate with each grouping – the results may surprise you.

New England

New Englanders have a reputation for being high strung, so maybe that’s why Mental Health Clinicians are so plentiful in the Northeast. A worker in this profession is 5.14 times more likely to reside in New England than the rest of the country.

Mid-Atlantic

Is it any surprise that the most impeccably-dressed states in the country (New York, Pennsylvania, New Jersey) are also home to the most Assistant Fashion Designers? These junior fashionistas are 3.83 times more likely to work in the Mid-Atlantic states than anywhere else.

South Atlantic

The South Atlantic region, especially Maryland, Virginia and Washington D.C., are home to plenty of government workers with fancy security ratings. No wonder Intelligence Analysts are more likely to work in that region than any other profession we surveyed.

East North Central

It’s only fitting that the region that is home to Motor City, USA has more Automotive Engineers than anywhere else in the country. You’re almost 5 times as likely to find them in Wisconsin, Michigan, Illinois, Indiana and Ohio.

East South Central

The East South Central region, made up of Kentucky, Tennessee, Mississippi and Alabama, are paved with cross-country railroad lines carrying goods manufactured there far and wide. Railroad Conductors are 3.33 times more likely to be working in this area than other regions.

West South Central

Oil country is lousy with Drilling Engineers – how else would we be able to get that black gold out of the earth? Oklahoma, Drilling Engineers are 7.12 times as likely to work in Texas, Arkansas and Louisiana than other areas.

Pacific

If you were expecting “Pro Surfer” to top the list of jobs common to the Pacific Coast, we’re sorry to disappoint. But Senior ASIC Design Engineers do some pretty fancy stuff – they work to design the super sleek technogeek hardware you lust over, like that fancy smartphone you’re using to read this slideshow right now.